Johnny Manziel Shuts Down His Twitter Account

You won't find Johnny Football @ Twitter anymore. Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel of Texas A&M said on Tuesday that he will cease to participate in the social media site so he can avoid sharing his private life with the public.

Manziel made the announcement days after he reportedly shoved a Texas A&M grad assistant after being intercepted three times during a spring practice scrimmage. Since leading the Aggies to an upset over Alabama and winning the Heisman Trophy in 2012, Manziel has become an Internet star, with pictures of him mingling with celebrities, hanging out with his girlfriend and partying at Mardi Gras finding their way to his Twitter account. All of the attention, and some criticism, became distracting for Manziel.

"I've kind of just shut it all off. With how the media has been with me for a while, I just shut everything off. As of [Monday], I said I was done with [Twitter] for however long. It's fun to have, but it can get to be distracting at points," Manziel said.

Manziel has tweeted more than 3,000 times. Many of the most scrutinized photos came directly from him, including a series of shots earlier this month from spring break at Cabo San Lucas, Mexico that featured the Texas A&M star with a Texas Longhorns tattoo. While the tattoo was temporary — a practical joke done on a dare — the criticism of Manziel was long-lasting.

"I'm surprised to [see] how the attention has continued through the offseason," Manziel said. "I guess I thought it would die off and slow down a little bit, but it really hasn't."

It's surprising that these shutdowns don't happen more often. While many sports (and non-sports) stars absolutely love the attention they get from fans and followers on social media sites, some are reluctant to stand in front of the fire hose of troll-y comments and base inanity. However, the dude side of us thinks Manziel may be doing all this so he can hook up with more chicks on the side. Our bet: he'll be back sooner than later. Fortunately, someone else has already staked a claim to the name "Johnny Drama."